Ian McKellen: I have Catholic film tastes

The legendary actor revealed he's not interested in scripts that are written purely for entertainment purposes.

The 73-year-old star of the Lord of the Rings is attracted to movies with a strong story rather than the ones that are guaranteed big blockbuster hits.

“I’ve always had very Catholic tastes. Tolkien and X-Men are both good storytelling. They’re not franchises about cannibals or mindless outer space visitors - these are epic tales that do more than entertain,” McKellen explained to the December edition of Reader's Digest magazine.

“Millions and millions of people have seen Lord of the Rings. Of course I’m more famous for that than Waiting for Godot. Just because a piece of work has been seen by so many more people doesn’t mean it’s less in value."

McKellen feels he has benefitted from working in the theatre, claiming there is a difference between a proper actor and a Hollywood film star.

He revealed Hugh Jackman is one of the few talents who can hold their own on stage just as well as they can pull off movie roles.

“Why do you act? You act for an audience. In the theatre, you’re in their presence. Film stars don’t know what it is to have an audience. You see some at awards ceremonies who can hardly make it to the middle of the stage, they’re so nervous. There’s a microphone so they don’t have to project. And they read their words," McKellen fumed.

“You see a theatre actor come on and it’s, ‘Oh, hold on, there’s a show happening’. Hugh Jackman at the Oscars - that’s a theatre man, who happens to be a film star.”